The Best of Providence and BC Since 2000

The Providence/Boston College rivalry has certainly changed since the turn of the century.  There were bitter feelings when the Eagles left the Big East for the ACC, record-breaking nights, NBA draft picks, and crushing buzzer beaters.  

Here is a look at a few of the most memorable games from the past 12 seasons.  

1999-2000 – A Big East Low: Perhaps a low point for the rivalry, both BC and the Friars were Big East bottom feeders in the winter of 2000.  They split their two games that season, playing one of the uglier games in conference history as Providence defeated the Troy Bell-less Eagles, 45-40, in what was the lowest scoring game in Big East history.  The freshman Bell was the lone bright spot for BC that season and he was done for the season with a knee injury, while the Friars struggled through one of their worst season ever in Tim Welsh’s second year at the helm.

Despite the ugliness, Erron Maxey put up a monster stat line, 16 points, 21 rebounds, on a day in which Latvian recruit Maris Laksa visited and eventually committed.  No one would have guessed it that night, but the fortunes of both schools were about to quickly change.

2000-01 – Heartbreak at the Buzzer: The next season the two schools were playing for first place in late-February

at the Providence Civic Center. Bell had become one of the best players in the country, turning BC into a worst-to-first team alongside fiery freshman Ryan Sidney.  PC had a turn-around of their own, led by the defensive brilliance of one-man press John Linehan.

BC (now #10 in the country) had defeated the Friars (now #25 nationally) at home earlier in the season and looked to be on their way to sealing first place in the Big East this time around, as they led 59-52 with 1:10 remaining.

The Friars rallied, however, cutting the lead to 59-58 with seven seconds left.  When BC missed both free throws Providence had the ball with five seconds left and a chance to win it.  Providence fumbled the inbounds pass, which improbably squirted to sophomore forward Rome Augustin who caught back iron on a wide-open 15 footer as the buzzer sounded on a crushing night for Providence.

2001-02 – Anything You Can Do…: The magic of Linehan was on display in January.  He held Bell to 12 points (ten below his season average) and came up with a whopping nine steals on the day to give Providence a shot.  Laksa made that shot – a three pointer with under a minute to play to give Providence the lead and the win.

Linehan finished with 13 points, nine steals and six assists, while freshman Ryan Gomes had 12 points and 12 rebounds.

Bell got his revenge in February, lighting Providence up for 39 points on seven 3 pointers.  PC led 49-41 early in the second half behind Abdul Mills’ 26 point night, but Bell was too much to handle on this night.

2002-03 – Donnie Welcomes Himself to PC: Donnie McGrath had one of his best games his freshman year at the Conte Forum.  He caught fire in sparking a 15-1 run to lead Providence to the 93-80 upset.  McGrath finished with 23 points, leaving BC play by play man Ted Sarandis saying he played like an All American afterwards, while Gomes added 20.  BC had a good freshman of their own – Craig Smith scored 25 points to pace the Eagles.

Later that season Bell became Boston College’s all-time leading scorer at the Dunkin Donuts Center.  He scored 33 points (his 12th game of 30 points or more) on the night and had over 2,300 for his career.  Gomes was good for 24 points and nine rebounds for the Friars, who had lost six of seven.

2003-04 – Eagles Ruin Senior Day: Providence was 17-5 and ranked 24th in the country when they visited BC during Gomes’ junior year.  Rob Sanders returned from a month-long hiatus with a finger injury and made a big shot late, Gomes scored 20, and BC was held to just 39% shooting in PC’s 61-52 victory.

Much more memorable that year, however, was Senior Day.  Providence was fresh off of a brutal loss to Pittsburgh in their second to last game of the regular season – a game that could have propelled PC to first in the conference.  It was a game they never recovered from.

BC stunned the Friars, jumping out to a 23-4 lead early, and holding on late as PC cut the lead to six, but could get no closer.  Providence scored only 15 first half points.  “If we do that, we’re going to be one-and-done, one-and-done,” Welsh said after the game in reference to the upcoming Big East and NCAA Tournaments.  PC was eliminated in their first game in each tourney.

2004-05 – Goodbye to the Big East: Gomes’ senior season had gotten off to a rocky start, but in the Big East opener at the Conte Forum he had taken over and it looked as though PC was going to run away with it.  Gomes scored nine of the first 11 points of the second half to give Providence a 50-38 lead over 13-0 Boston College.  Freshman Sean Williams led a remarkable comeback and the Eagles’ undefeated season remained in tact.

A few weeks later BC was one of only three undefeated teams left when they came to Providence.  Jared Dudley finished with 21 points, 12 rebounds, and six assists and made a three pointer with 1:20 left to give BC the lead.

The Friars, losers of five straight, couldn’t recover, as BC improved to 19-0.  More infuriating for Providence fans was that BC was having this success in their last season in the Big East.  They were ACC-bound the next year.

2005-06 – Big East Ban: BC’s first season in the ACC did not include an out of conference matchup with the Friars, or anyone from the Big East for that matter.  That wasn’t by accident.  There were hard feelings on both sides.

2006-07 – Thanksgiving Delight: It was a feel-good Thanksgiving for Friar fans.  In their first time since Boston College left the Big East, Geoff McDermott played perhaps his best game as a Friar, scoring 18 points and grabbing 16

rebounds in a 73-64 win over #23 BC.  Sean Williams was outstanding with 12 blocks on the night before Thanksgiving.

2007-08 – Back and Forth at the Garden: In a wild one at the Boston Garden, Providence led by 24 in the second half, but fell apart late, needing a pair of three pointers by Jeff Xavier and Weyinme Efejuku in the final minute to send it to overtime.  In the extra session freshman Jamine Peterson (14 points, 7 rebounds) torched BC inside as Providence won against BC for the second time since their departure, 98-89.

2010-11 – Council’s Prayer: The past few meetings haven’t been very memorable.  The 2010 contest was nearly monumental, as Vincent Council nearly banked in a shot from 75 feet at the buzzer that would have given Providence a one point victory at the Heights.  Marshon Brooks finished with 28 points and 10 rebounds for PC.

 

Email Kevin at kevin.farrahar@friarbasketball.com

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